Data storage systems contain components such as disk arrays for storing any amount of data and storage processors for processing commands related to reading or writing data stored in the disk arrays. As with any system of even moderate complexity, there is a risk that a component within the data storage system may behave erratically or fail. For example, a disk in an array may exhibit increased access times or a storage processor may suddenly go offline. A system administrator of a data storage system may contact a technical support department upon the discovery of an issue with a system component.
A technical support department of a system vendor implements technical support procedures to diagnose root causes of issues with components of the systems they support. Conventional technical support procedures involve manually collecting information about the component. For example, technical support personnel may remotely access configuration information about the component. The technical support personnel may then compare this information with that found in, e.g., best practices documentation, to produce a diagnosis.